MANIFESTATIONS OF GOD'S PRESENCE

 

The revival at Asbury University attracted thousands of people within a two-week span. This was all happening in Wilmore Kentucky, a community with a population of some 6,000 people. One eyewitness reported that the services filled overflow buildings and a grass lawn with a 2 ½-mile backup of cars going into Wilmore.

Now we know that the fires of the Asbury Revival are spreading. Revival services have since begun at Samford University in Alabama, Cedarville University in Ohio, and Lee and Belmont Universities in Tennessee. Interestingly, more than 20 college campuses have been affected so far.

Since the start of the revival on Wednesday, February 08, no one is able to explain the cause and spread of the movement. There is no visionary, no official leadership, no program of activities and no structured promotion, yet the spirit of revival continues to grow.

That pattern of growth is consistent within the history of revivals. For instance, without the aid of the internet, the Third Great Awakening began in 1857-1858. By the end of March 1858 every church and public hall was filled to capacity in downtown New York City as ten thousand businessmen were gathering daily for prayer.

According to revival historian Dr J. Edwin Orr, approximately one million people were converted in the nation during 1858-1859. The influence of the awakening was felt everywhere in the nation. Almost simultaneously, another revival started in Canada. These two revival streams began to spread around the world. This influence led to revivals in Wales (1858-1860), Ireland and Scotland (1859-1860), and England (1859-1860). In 1858, about 200,000 converts were recorded in Sweden. The India Awakening began in late 1859, with the greatest revivals occurring in the south of India.

We must not omit to mention the revival overflow into Jamaica. On September 28, 1860, a Moravian missionary to Jamaica, began to record what historians call the “Great Jamaica Revival”. For four weeks, almost non-stop, one Moravian congregation was in prayer. The revival spread quickly to the Anglican, Baptist, Congregationalist, Methodist and Presbyterian congregations. For almost two years, churches were packed with worshipers. Participating churches recorded hundreds of conversions.  

One Congregationalist minister summarized the practical results of the revival as follows: “It closed the rum shops and gambling houses, reconciled long-separated husband and wives, restored prodigal children, produced scores of bans to be read for marriage, crowded every place of worship, quickened the zeal of ministers, purified the churches, and brought many sinners to repentance. It also excited the rage of those ungodly people whom it had not humbled.”

Like in the “Great Jamaica Revival”, revivals also affect secular society. Agreed, revivals begin among Christians and affect Christians. But the Christian witness affects the societies in which the Christians live. One revival in South Africa resulted in hundreds of stolen items being returned to businesses. In Canada, people returned to shops to pay for items they stole over the years. Some universities did not know how to handle confessions of plagiarism and stolen intellectual property.

Revivals establish new forms of community. Some refashion social and religious structures by transferring power from the center to the periphery. New leaders emerge. Different criteria for leadership are recognized. Different theological emphases are recognized. The impact felt from revivals are spiritually significant and durable.

From the little recorded, we know many institutions credit their existence either directly or indirectly to revivals. One of the more prominent is the Salvation Army, founded by William Booth, a Methodist minister. This evangelical ministry began in the East End of London in 1865. In Jamaica, the Bethlehem Moravian College (1861) is still equipping persons for service. The London Missionary Society’s Congregational churches had grown so strong that in 1867, they decided to pull their missionaries out of Jamaica, considering the island sufficiently evangelized. Baptist churches across the island reported 12,000 conversions, ending a 25-year decline in attendance.

No one will ever know the full impact of the Asbury Revival, started on February 08, 2023. What we do know is that that relatively small Christian university experienced an extraordinary encounter with an influence bigger than the students could imagine. The influence is similar to encounters others have had at different times in history.

Jesus attributed this type of anonymous encounter to the Holy Spirit. In speaking to Nicodemus, Jesus said, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).

 

 

 

A MODERN-DAY REVIVAL

 

During my graduate studies, we learned that there was a revival at Wheaton College, some 40 miles away from my campus. It began on a Sunday evening in March 1995. Two students from another university had just shared about a revival at their Texas campus. After they spoke, the moderator began to make a personal confession of his pride. He did so calmly and briefly, but sincerely. For about five days, non-stop, other students began to confess. Some wept about their hatred, sexual immorality, materialism, racism and self-destructive behaviours.

That 1995 experience in a Chicago suburb is what Christians call a revival. Revival is a term used to refer to a spiritual awakening in the lives of Christians. It is a corporate experience that results in a renewed passion for God. Although revivals differ in duration and intensity, there are some common features with all revivals. Primarily, there is a sense of God’s presence. That sense of God’s presence is on display at the revival taking place at Asbury University, a Wesleyan-Holiness institution in Wilmore, Kentucky.  

During a routine Wednesday morning chapel session on February 08, something beyond the regular happened. Students did not want to leave the auditorium. They were struck by what seemed to be a quiet, but powerful sense of God’s presence. They stayed and continued to worship. They are still there, twelve days later.

In a recent Christianity Today article, Asbury Professor, Dr Tom McCall, described it this way: “I teach theology across the street at Asbury Theological Seminary, and when I heard of what was happening, I immediately decided to go to the chapel to see for myself. When I arrived, I saw hundreds of students singing quietly. They were praising and praying earnestly for themselves and their neighbours and our world—expressing repentance and contrition for sin and interceding for healing, wholeness, peace, and justice.”

The professor recalls that “some were reading and reciting Scripture. Others were standing with arms raised. Several were clustered in small groups praying together. A few were kneeling at the altar rail in the front of the auditorium. Some were lying prostrate, while others were talking to one another, their faces bright with joy. They were still worshiping when I left in the late afternoon and when I came back in the evening. They were still worshiping when I arrived early Thursday morning—and by midmorning hundreds were filling the auditorium again. I have seen multiple students running toward the chapel each day.”

 

Professor McCall admits that he is weary of hype and very wary of manipulation. “I come from a background (in a particularly revivalist segment of the Methodist-holiness tradition) where I’ve seen efforts to manufacture “revivals” and “movements of the Spirit” that were sometimes not only hollow but also harmful. I do not want anything to do with that. And truth be told, this is nothing like that. There is no pressure or hype. There is no manipulation. There is no high-pitched emotional fervour. To the contrary, it has so far been mostly calm and serene. The mix of hope and joy and peace is indescribably strong and indeed almost palpable—a vivid and incredibly powerful sense of shalom. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is undeniably powerful but also so gentle.”

 

But when and how would this revival come to an end? The school’s president, Dr Kevin Brown, said he is trying to balance the incredible moment happening at the school and the needs of its students and their academic experience. He went on to say they will increase security, prayer and ministry support and event management. The "revival" has attracted people from all over the world, leaving long lines to get in. From this week, the school administration will allow services to be held only in the afternoon and evenings with a priority for high schoolers and people 25 or younger.

 

Like with the Wheaton revival in 1995, the Asbury revival was an unplanned, non-denominational, spontaneous movement of God. Time will tell the true impact of this movement of God. We have already heard of stories of conversion, confession, healing, renewal and reconciliation.

 

This God-designed revival was well-timed. At a time when many people of faith are concerned, because of declining church attendance, increasing secularism and public anti-Christian sentiments, we needed a reminder that our faith is still relevant and necessary. The public toxic rhetoric needs to be diluted. A spirit of forgiveness, compassion and grace needs to be returned to the market-place. Honestly, we all need to experience a renewed sense of God’s presence in our personal and corporate lives. Like the Psalmist, we need to ask, “… will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in You” (Psalm 85:6)?

 

 

MORE THAN ANOTHER PIECE OF PAPER

 

I cringe every time I hear someone say, “… a marriage license is nothing more than a piece of paper”. Not true. A marriage license is essentially a legal permit that states you and your partner are legally allowed to marry. Also, it is a confirmation from the authority that there are no qualifications that would disqualify one from a legal marriage.

Upon obtaining a marriage license, one then proceeds to obtaining a marriage certificate. This certificate is endorsed by the state and proves that a couple is officially married. Honestly, getting married is about so much more than just “… having a piece of paper”. In a number of categories, marriage comes with a myriad of advantages. It is not just a notice of two persons who love each other.

The ”piece of paper” confirms a binding legal contract. That legal contract puts one in a position to make major medical decisions on behalf of one’s spouse. In addition it entitles each other to Social Security, Medicare and even disability benefits. Shared benefits extend to real estate, tax shelters, access to career compensation, insurance and retirement funds.

Undergirding these economic benefits is a commitment to each other. One of the fundamental cornerstones of a successful marriage is commitment — an unwavering allegiance to a relationship and a partner. In a sense, marriage is the surrender of individualism and an adoption of conformity. It is a commitment to a partnership. The “piece of paper” ratifies this commitment.

Governments use legal marriages to ensure and regulate healthy societies –

- In every marriage, both parties must be unmarried - to avoid polygamy (bigamy);

- Each party must be at least 18 years old – to avoid child abuse;

- Each person must be sane and mentally capable of entering into a legally binding agreement;

- Some states require a blood test before a marriage licence is issued;

- Some states also require a waiting period of one to six days between the licence and     wedding;

- States require a ceremony and a qualified officiant who can administer an oath;

- There must be an exchange of vows or promises;

- During the ceremony, one or two witnesses, above the age of 18, must sign the certificate;

- In some States, a marriage is only allowed between a man and a woman; and

- You may also need to prove that you are not related to your partner.

In some states, you can enjoy all of the benefits of being married without having to go through any of the traditional formalities. Your relationship, however, must generally meet the following requirements:

- You must present yourselves publicly as a married couple.

- You must be legally eligible to be married, which means you must be old enough to marry                        legally, and not already married

- You must mutually agree to be married

- You must live together as man and wife

If you can sufficiently document that your relationship meets all of these requirements, you may be considered legally married in the eyes of the law. This is called a common law marriage and will confer upon you all of the legal rights, privileges, and restrictions as a conventional marriage. Interestingly, governments see commitment as a foundation upon which to build common law marriages.

 

Although this blog was not intended to defend the benefits of marriage, one cannot ignore the impact stable marriages have on societies:

 

- Marriage reliably creates the social, economic and affective conditions for effective       parenting;

- Marriages change lifestyles and habits in ways that are personally and socially beneficial. It is a “seedbed” of prosocial behaviour.

- Marriage generates social capital. The social bonds created through marriage yield       benefits not     only for the family but for the larger society.

- Marriage is a personal, but not private, relationship with great public significance.        Marriage is good for the couple; it is also provides the optimal conditions for             bearing and raising children. Marriage makes an essential contribution to the      common good. 

 

Then, what constitutes marriage in God’s eyes? Firstly, requirements that are reasonable and not against biblical standards. Secondly, compliance with cultural, familial and covenantal practices, typically employed to recognize a couple as officially married. Also, a couple should consummate the marriage sexually, fulfilling the physical aspect of “becoming one flesh”.

 

So, although the “piece of paper” does not guarantee stable marriages, it announces a commitment upon which stable marriages can be established. It is the best of the alternatives to empower every member of the family unit. It ensures order and respect for societal, familial and biblical values.